Robot Seeks Out Toxic Waste Dumped by the Mafia
September 16, 2009
The mafia is going to have to rethink dumping toxic waste into Italian waters now that there’s a robot submarine on their trail. Italian authorities have deployed the underwater surveillance robot to a shipwreck off the Calabrian coast to see if it’s loaded with radioactive waste. An informant has told police that the ship may be part of a lucrative toxic waste-dumping scheme.
From The Huffington Post:
Calabrian prosecutor Bruno Giordano has cautioned in TV interviews that that until the contents of containers on the sunken ship are known, he can’t say if the allegations by a mob turncoat about the ship are true.
The robot sub began filming Saturday. On Tuesday, it was still unclear what the cargo held, or even if the ship was the Cunsky cargo vessel that turncoat Francesco Fonti has spoken about to magistrates and in interviews on Italian TV.
No name of the ship is visible, and it wasn’t known if someone had removed the name or if algae might have covered up writing.
Giordano said the former mobster, Francesco Fonti, from the Calabria-based ‘ndrangheta crime syndicate, has claimed the mob sank “hundreds” of barrels of illegally disposed of waste.
It won’t be surprising at all if it turns out the ship is carrying toxic waste. The Italian mob is renowned for orchestrating serious offenses against the environment in addition to their other crimes, dumping toxic waste on rural lands and in the waters off foreign countries for huge sums of money.
And, crazy as it may sound, this surveillance submarine is far from the first robotic pollution-detector. UK scientists developed creepily lifelike robotic fish that will be released off the coast of Northern Spain in 2011 to collect data on pollution.
Link [The Huffington Post]
Robot Removes Pollution from Water
July 13, 2009
As potable water becomes more scarce, a new invention offers hope, with the potential to clean up polluted waterways and make them suitable for drinking once again. The WatCleaner robot, created by Chinese industrial designer Ye Yao, floats on the surface of the water and automatically filters oil, trash and other pollutants. It has the ability to detect fish, making sure that none are harmed during the cleaning process.
From Blue Living Ideas:
The WatCleaner has detectors on the bottom that monitor water for pollution, everything from basic garbage to oil, and clean the water. Absorbent socks on the top of the WatCleaner absorb oil and cleanse it. Additionally, garbage is taken in and directed to a disintegrator- clean water is then sprayed through the top of the WatCleaner and returned to the water system. Along the way the WatCleaner also detects fish in order to clean the water in their area.
Beyond just cleaning the water of contaminants, the WatCleaner is also set up to transmit water condition information to land based controllers and ask for help if it encounters conditions too polluted to handle alone. As the WatCleaner takes on oil and garbage, the bin and oil bags can be removed and replaced.
First a trash-cleaning robot, and now a robot that cleans up polluted water? Science fiction is really coming to life. This invention has major potential for use all around the world. If we could clean up dirty waterways and make them safe again, that would go a long way toward easing the coming water crisis and preventing a lot of suffering. Perhaps the team that’s trying to clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch should give Ye Yao a call.
Link [Blue Living Ideas]
Real Life Wall-E: Scientists Develop Robot Trash Collector
July 8, 2009
The shiny green robot with wide plastic eyes looks like it sprung out of the fictional world of Wall-E, and its friendly look helps people accept its presence in their lives. But people in the Italian town of Peccioli likely would have accepted it no matter what it looked like, given its purpose: cleaning up trash. Peccioli is home to one of the most advanced dumping sites in Italy, and trash is big business here.
Global Post has all the details on how the ‘DustCart’ was received and how exactly it works:
During a recent test-run at Peccioli’s main terrace, the future of garbage collection zoomed in on two wheels, rounded and shiny, devoid of arms, and with two big round inspiring eyes.
“We are about to begin,” said a researcher over a microphone.
The scientists had transformed the terrace into an outdoor laboratory, laying wires on the cobblestone, installing webcams at street corners, and setting up a control room to monitor DustCart’s every move.
“Our colleague will now simulate a user’s call,” said the researcher.
Like a taxi answering a call, DustCart rode across the terrace to meet the caller.
Once the robot arrived, it asked for a personal ID number that both identifies the user and tracks the garbage. It also asked for the kind of trash being dumped — organic, recyclable or waste. DustCart then opened its belly bin, collected the trash and took it to a fake dumping site.
Check out the whole story over at Global Post.
While many of us are a bit wary of the idea of living with robots, the DustCart is pretty cool. It’s pretty clear that we need a major overhaul of our waste management systems, and while a fleet of robots isn’t going to solve our problems, it’s an interesting way to approach them.
Link [Global Post]
Solar-Powered 6-in-1 Robot Drives, Flies and Floats
May 28, 2009
For $21 you can distract your kids – or amuse yourself – with a fun kit that can be transformed into six different solar-powered robots. 25 pieces easily fit together to create a dog, a boat, a moving plane, a car, a windmill and a desktop plane thanks to a solar panel mounted on the top.
The pieces clip together easily, there are no screws involved and it can be charged up with a 50-watt or brighter halogen bulb when the sun isn’t shining. Check it out at the Red5 gadget shop.
Link [Red 5] via [Greenpacks.org]
Pollution-Detecting Robot Fish to be Released into Spain Waters
March 22, 2009
Robot fish developed by British scientists will be released into the sea off northern Spain next year in an effort to detect pollution. If the yearlong trial in the northern Spanish port of Gijon goes well, the scientists hope that the fish will be used in rivers, lakes, and seas across the globe.
From Reuters:
The carp-shaped robots, costing 20,000 pounds ($29,000) apiece, mimic the movement of real fish and are equipped with chemical sensors to sniff out potentially hazardous pollutants, such as leaks from vessels or underwater pipelines.
They will transmit the information back to shore using Wi-Fi technology.
Unlike earlier robotic fish, which needed remote controls, they will be able to navigate independently without any human interaction.
They’re creepy enough until you realize that they’re FIVE FEET LONG. Holy crap, can you imagine snorkeling and running into one of these things? They’re the size of freaking seals and their lifeless black eyes are kind of disturbing.
Weirdness factor aside, this is an awesome idea. And there’s a good reason why they didn’t simply create mini submarines instead of developing these bionic fish: they felt that building a design based on millions of years’ worth of evolution, which was incredibly energy efficient, was the best approach. Taking cues from nature is definitely smart design!
Link [Reuters]
‘RepRap’ Robot Can Replicate Itself
June 30, 2008
It’s begun. The robots are taking over – plastic robots, to boot. English researchers have created a robot that can create 3-D replicas of objects like shoes and coat hooks – and can even replicate itself. It’s meant for the average person to have on their desktop, so you can create common plastic items as needed in your own home.
From PC World:
Scientists from the University of Bath in England unveiled an open-source machine that acts like a three-dimensional printer. Instead of printing out documents or pictures on paper, this printer uses blueprints to produce 3-D plastic objects.
The machine has been dubbed RepRap, which is short for replicating rapid-prototyper.
The goal is to eventually build a robot that can produce individual processors and circuit boards so people can build their own computers, according to Zack Smith, director of the RepRap Research Foundation.
Smith explained that unlike a regular printer that uses ink, RepRap heats up plastic and then squeezes it out into a line. The lines are built up into usable forms as they solidify. So far, the robot has made everyday plastic objects, like door handles, sandals and coat hooks. The machine has also successfully copied all of its own structural pieces.
It’ll likely be about 20 years before the robot can fully replicate itself. So, those of us with the sense to realize that giving machines intelligence is a deadly mistake have some time to start preparing.
Seriously though, this machine has the potential to either produce tons of useless plastic junk that will end up polluting the earth – or it could reduce our dependence on China for cheap manufacturing. (Chris DiBona, Google’s Open Source Programs Manager, said “Think of RepRap as China on your desktop”.)
The jury’s still out on how good it would ultimately be for the planet. It certainly seems like it could potentially cause a copyright lawsuit extravaganza as people stopped purchasing everyday items from stores and just created them at home.
Get more details at the RepRap website.
When Robots Attack, They Will Be Made Of Recycled Styrofoam
April 14, 2008
We all know that Styrofoam is a non-biodegradable enemy of Mother Earth. But might it also be used to one day destroy the human race? Probably not, but artist Michael Salter has created a massive 21-foot robot made from the stuff to serve as a warning. From the article,
“Dubbed as the Giant Styrobot, this bot stands exceptionally tall at 21 foot. Completely crafted of Styrofoam, Giant Styrobot has altered the function of this packaging material from a protector of packed contents to dinosaurous robot that is colossal enough to crush everything under its feet.”
As you can see from the above image, this robot has also spawned numerous mini-robots to assist in carrying away your dog or DVD collection. But seriously, over 14 million metric tons of polystyrene are produced annually, according to the EPA. The vast majority ends up in landfills where one polystyrene cup can take several hundred years to decompose. To date, only 1 percent of polystyrene is recycled.
Perhaps robots are the answer. I personally welcome our new well-insulated overlords.
Link: [Ecofriend]
If We Can Build BigDog, We Can Engineer a Green Society
March 19, 2008
Have you seen the video of BigDog, a project developed by Boston Dynamics for the U.S. Military? BigDog is a four legged robotic pack mule that is at once awe inspiring and a little terrifying (cough**Skynet**cough). Pay attention to the BigDog collecting itself after it almost slipped on the ice halfway through.
If we walked on the moon almost 40 years ago, and can make crazy ass robots like this today, how could we not be able to engineer our society so that it doesn’t destroy the environment in which it lives? We’re barely flexing our ability to engineer a clean (notice I didn’t say cleaner) way of living the good, modern life.
